Ashe keys 2-0 Dynamo Open Cup victory

The Houston Dynamo advanced to the quarterfinals of the
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup for the second time in four years with a 2-0 win over
the Austin Aztex Wednesday night at Nelson Field in Austin. Midfielder Corey Ashe, a halftime substitute, had a hand
in two goals in the final 20 minutes to lift the Dynamo to the win and a road
date next Tuesday in the quarterfinals against the Charleston Battery, the team
that knocked the Dynamo out of the tournament in each of the last two years.

With both teams at less than full strength due to
injuries and, in the Dynamo’s case, national team call-ups, Houston head coach
Dominic Kinnear went with a 3-5-2 formation that included only three regular
starters: defender Bobby Boswell and midfielders Brian Mullan and Richard
Mulrooney.

The Dynamo took the early initiative, as English forward
Ade Akinbiyi had a goal disallowed for an offside whistle just 40 seconds into
the match. Mullan went close in the fifth minute, when he fired a
left-footed shot from a cleared corner kick, but Austin’s Jeff Harwell was in
position on the left post to deflect the shot away. In the ninth minute,
Houston’s John Michael Hayden tried his luck with a turnaround left-footed shot
from the top of the penalty area, but Austin goalkeeper Sam Reynolds held the
shot easily.

Austin’s first early chance came in the 13th minute, when
Dynamo goalkeeper Tally Hall, making his competitive debut for Houston, had to
be alert to clear a soft back pass outside the box, and Aztex midfielder Jeff
Harwell tried to float in a shot from the right sideline, but Hall got back to
tip the ball over the end line.

The best chance of the first half came in the 40th
minute, when Austin forward Kyle Brown, who played for the Dynamo last season,
latched onto a long ball from right back Gareth Evans and fired a wide-angle
left-footed shot toward the top left corner, but Hall tipped the ball away at
full stretch.

At halftime, Houston brought on Geoff Cameron and Corey
Ashe for Mulrooney and Mullan, respectively, as part of their plan to keep
players fresh for MLS action this weekend. Both teams struggled for chances
early in the second half, but the Dynamo almost broke the deadlock in the 60th minute.
Midfielder Danny Cruz, less than 24 hours removed from a lengthy plane trip
from Egypt on U.S. U-20 national team duty, played the ball inside to Dominic
Oduro, and he rifled a shot from a bad angle that caromed off the crossbar,
down off the goal line, and back into play. Akinbiyi tried to follow up but
could not connect on his header.

The Dynamo did break through in the 70th minute from a
free kick 23 yards from goal just to the right of center. Hayden bent a shot
over the wall, and Reynolds dove to tip the ball into the crossbar. The rebound
then caromed into the center of the six-yard box, where Ashe reacted first and
dove to head the ball into the net from close range. The goal was the first for
Ashe since he scored the clinching goal against Pachuca in SuperLiga play on
July 29, 2008, a goal that also came from a header.

Austin’s best chance to tie the game came five minutes
later, when substitute Jarius Holmes made a run up the left side before slipping
a pass in to Eddie Johnson, who got to the top of the box before firing a low
right-footed shot that Hall alertly smothered. In the 77th minute, the Dynamo
almost put the game away when Oduro had a breakaway opportunity, but Reynolds
charged out to make the stop.

Houston finally sealed things in the 90th minute when a
flowing passing sequence culminated with substitute Kei Kamara finding Ashe on
the left, and he broke into the box before crossing to the top of the six-yard
box, where Oduro flew in to volley the ball behind Reynolds for his first
Dynamo goal.

The Dynamo are one of four MLS teams to qualify for the
quarterfinals, and they will get a chance for a little revenge on Tuesday when
they face the Charleston Battery at Blackbaud Stadium in Charleston for the
third consecutive year.